Top Talib Kweli Quotes - Quotesmemo.com

Talib Kweli Biography

Talib Kweli Greene (/tæˈlɪb kwɑːˈliː/; born October 3, 1975) is an American hip hop recording artist, entrepreneur, and social activist. Kweli earned recognition early on through his collaboration with fellow Brooklyn rapper Mos Def, when they formed the group Black Star. Kweli's musical career continued with solo success including collaborations with producers Kanye West, Just Blaze, and Pharrell Williams. His most recent solo album is titled Radio Silence, released in 2017. In 2011, Kweli founded his own record label, Javotti Media.

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Talib Kweli Quotes

God gave us music, so we play with our words.

Gave, God, Hip Hop, Music, Play, Rap

Hip hop has always been, for us, for artists who are pure to the craft - any place overseas, whether it's Australia, any place in Asia, Germany, Africa, it becomes something where you can still go and work. Hip hop is an import culture. We're spoiled by it here. It's homegrown.

Artist, Australia, Hip Hop, Homegrown, Place, Spoiled

I started rapping because I wanted people to hear what I have to say, I want as many people to hear me as possible, and I do everything in my power to make that pop.

Hear, Make, People, Rap, Say, Want

I'm at a loss for words. But even my loss is amplified.

A Loss For Words, Amplified, Loss, Words

Michael Bloomberg is a sensible guy. He's just privileged. He's a goddamn billionaire, and he or his family members have never had to deal with anything as remotely degrading as stop and frisk. So he has no point of reference.

Billionaire, Deal, Guy, Members, Remotely, Sensible

The beautiful thing about hip-hop is it's like an audio collage. You can take any form of music and do it in a hip-hop way and it'll be a hip-hop song. That's the only music you can do that with.

Beautiful, Hip Hop, Like, Song, Take, Way

I think people are into me because of my music choices and my musicality.

Choices, Music, Musicality, People, Thinking

War is not civilized.

War, Civilized

And you know, art as commerce, doesn't really make too much sense, they don't go together.

Art, Commerce, Know, Together, Too Much

They ask me what I'm writing for - I'm writing to show you what we're fighting for.

Ask, Ask Me, Fighting, Writing

If I focus on being an activist and my job is to be a rapper, I'm not going to be as good of a rapper. I need to focus on hip-hop and focus on making the music, so that when the activists come to me and they need my voice to create a platform, then I've got enough people listening to me. Not because I'm conscious, but because I'm dope.

Create, Dope, Enough, Jobs, Music, Rapper

When I met you it was magic. . . We polar opposites, but attracted like we was magnets.

Hip Hop, Magic, Magnets, Opposites, Polar, Rap

I feel like I have way more resources, way more experience. I'm better. But my fans romanticize the earlier stuff, and I don't think it's just like a nostalgia thing of "He's not as good" - I think it's because that earlier stuff was aggressively marketed as a lifestyle to them.

Fans, Marketed, Nostalgia, Stuff, Thinking, Way

I think the biggest problem in our country is mass incarceration and the prison-industrial complex. From the Rockefeller drug laws to stand your ground to stop and frisk, all these are pointing people, especially and disproportionately black and brown people, towards the criminal-justice system. It's depleting whole generations of people.

Complex, Country, People, System, Thinking, Towards

I see that happening with hip hop purists now. Where you have an artist like a Kendrick [Lamar] or a Drake, who are really trying different things emotionally, different things musically, and on a mainstream level. And you have underground hip hop fans dissing it, for the simple fact that it's mainstream - not because what they're doing is whack, or what they're doing is not sincere.

Artist, Musically, See, Simple, Trying Different Things

To be honest, that whole exchange with Crunk Feminist actually made me write the song because I realize there's a lot of young women out there so hurt by the misogynistic images in hip-hop they paint it with such a broad brush stroke that they think anybody that defends hip-hop is defending misogyny.

Brush, Defends, Hurt, Misogyny, Song, Writing

I think hip hop is a dance music that's rebellious by nature.

Inspirational, Dance, Thinking, Nature, Rebellious

Hip-hop isn't as complex as a woman is.

Complex, Hip Hop, Hips, Hops, Woman

These niggaz ain't thugs, the real thugs is the government. Don't matter if you Independent, Democrat or Republican, Niggaz politickin' the street, get into beef, Start blastin'. . . now a new cat is executive chief.

Independent, Niggaz, Rap, Real, Thugs

A true artist does not depend on radio for success. A true fan does not let radio determine what they support

Fan, Inspirational, Music, Success, Support

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